Interview: Those Makeshift Heroes

Hey guys,

I got to interview the cool guys of Those Makeshift Heroes.
The three piece band from London (UK) makes the world a better place by playing Alt-Rock. 

Those Makeshift Heroes are:
Chris Ransome (guitar, vocals)
Mike Ransome (bass, vocals)
Chris Haywood (drums)

See what they told me about their band, Hayley Williams, always being hungry and a lot more...

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Review: "Life's A Show" - Martin and James

Band: Martin and James
Title: Life's A Show
Genre: acoustic, folk, pop
Label: Vertigo / Universal
Release: 30th August 2013
hits rating: 10/10
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Hey guys,

I could not be happier to write today's review.
30th August is the day music lovers have been looking forward to for quite a while now.

Martin and James from Glasgow (Scotland) are now ready to conquer the world with the second album "Life's A Show". 

If you've seen Martin and James multiple times performing live you already got an idea of their talent. They play 2 or 3 instruments at once, they barely never miss a note and they just sound great.

So what can you expect from this longplayer?
Let me tell you:

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Giveaway: Martin and James goodies [CLOSED]

Hey guys,

as I promised in this post I'm finally giving some stuff away again.

As I just recently interviewed Martin and James and got some more things planned involving them I decided to hold a M&J themed giveaway.

Please do not freak out because this is not the biggest giveaway ever.

But it's nice!

I got three pieces to give away and decided to let three of you win one piece instead of one person win everything.

Giveaways are always some kind of thank you so the more people can win something, the better!

Here's what you can win:

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Interview: Claudia Heidegger

Hey guys,
I'm really excited for you to read the interview I've done with the lovely Claudia Heidegger.

Claudia is an Austrian singer-songwriter who moved to London (England).
She's known for fragile songs with a touch of "Alice in Wonderland" and lyrics that tell stories coming straight from the heart.

In the interview she talked to me about moving, her favourite spots in London, the endless list of musicians she loves and shares a part of lyrics from a brand new song with us! 

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Get To Know: The Megadudes (+Single Review)

Hey guys,

"Get To Know" posts are always fun as the artists can let out all of their energy to describe and represent themselves.

And that's exactly what The Megadudes, the rock band from London (UK) did.

Check it out:

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Concert Review: Martin and James (supporting Amy MacDonald)

Hey guys,

as most of you already know - I went to Cologne yesterday to see Martin and James perform.

I was planning to write a full review of their set and Amy MacDonald's but as I didn't catch Amy's full show, I just decided to write a more laid back review with personal impressions.

The road trip to Cologne was pretty different to the usual as the streets were horribly crowded and made me arrive much later than planned.

When we finally arrived (after what felt like 4 days but really was just 4 hours) and met up with a friend it was time to head inside to interview Martin and James.

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EP Review: "Seven Years" - Nina Yasmineh

Hey guys,

it's all about the reviews I guess.

Most artists who contact me would like me to review their music. I think that just shows how at the end of the day feedback is what helps you grow.

Nina Yasmineh is a singer-songwriter from New York City (US).
She plays indie pop with a touch of electronic.

Her self-produced EP "Seven Years" has received nothing but great reviews.

And I'll gladly join this club of reviewers today.

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Get To Know: Broken Witt Rebels

Hey guys,
on this lovely day I've got a cheeky little "Get To Know" post for you.
You're going to get to know (if you read on, of course!) a very cool blues/rock band from Birmingham (England).

The four gentlemen are also known as Broken Witt Rebels.

So let the rebellion begin!

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Album: "Set Fire" - The Box Tiger

Band: The Box Tiger
Title: Set Fire
Genre: Indie-Rock
Label: unsigned
Release: 6th August 2013
hits rating: 9/10
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Hey guys,
another album review, another GREAT band.

A while ago I got an email by a member of a female fronted band. That kind of made me curious because I sadly don't have lots of ladies on house in the sand yet. 

I kindly got send the band's debut album.

So who am I talking about?
The Box Tiger, an indie-rock band from Toronto (Canada).

The band consists of:
Sonia Sturino (vocals, guitar)
Jordan Stowell (guitar, bass)
Marcus Cipparrone (drums)
Benjamin Tran (bass)

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favourite performances

Hey guys,

I decided it was about time for me to blog about the things I love again.

Don't get me wrong - I love everything that lands on house in the sand.

But lately (let's say over the past two months) I've written review over review over Spotlight On's over get to knows over interviews. Of course that's exactly what I want to do and I couldn't be happier about the amount of emails and tweets I get from musicians who'd like to be featured.

It really makes me happy to know there are people who like what I do on here. It means I'm doing the right thing and it also means that (music) journalism is what I want to be doing in my life.

But permanently writing about the submissions can get tiring at some point. That does not mean I don't like the music. (Geeez, I love it!)

And when things become tiring you have to change something and make everything exciting again. That's why today I'd like to share some of my favourite performances with you!

Also, some critics I got maybe forgot that this is still a personal blog, written by a journalism student - not a professional blog written by an expert. ;)

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EP Review: "Pretty Girls" - The Wild Young Hearts

Hey guys,

a little while ago I interviewed Robert from The Wild Young Hearts, a quality rock band from Los Angeles (US).

Today I'd like to review their EP "Pretty Girls".

An extended player that is filled with wonderful, almost a bit vintage sounding, rock music.

Note: The Wild Young Hearts used to be called Streetcar Rendezvous!

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Online Store: bluenators

Hey guys,

today I'd like to help out a good friend of mine.

As some of you who have been there for a while still remember I once sold band bracelets I created myself.

My good friend, Lisa, just recently started one of those bracelet businesses and to be honest - she's doing it way more professional than I ever could.

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Spotlight On: Gilded Bones

Hey guys,

today I want to turn the special house in the sand spotlight on Gilded Bones.

Gilded Bones is a folk/rock solo project from Swansea (UK).

The man behind Gilded Bones is Gerwyn Davies.

Gerwyn is a singer/songwriter, guitarist, producer and engineer.

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EP Review: "The Traveller's Song" - Lizabett Russo

Hey guys,

I got asked to review Lizabett Russo's debut E.P and after first listening to it I just knew I had to.

Lizabett Russo is a singer/songwriter from Aberdeen (Scotland).
Her sound is a mix of acoustic, folk and soul and maybe some bits of pop also.

She kindly sent me her debut E.P called "The Traveller's Song" for me to review it.

So here's my track by track review:

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Interview: Joe Symes and the Loving Kind

Hey guys,
Interviews are always fun, right?

This time the acoustic rock band Joe Symes and the Loving Kind from Liverpool (UK).
Special about the interview is that not only one or two members but the whole band took time to answer the questions.

But who is the whole band?
Joe Symes (vocals, guitar, harmonica)
Colin White (drums, percussion)
Dave Skilling (keyboards, backing vocals)
Paul Hetherington (lead guitar, synth guitar)
Chris Giblin (bass guitar)

See what I asked the guys about acoustic rock, their debut album, tea & biscuits, their first gig and quite a lot more ...

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The HITS playlist - part 2

Hey guys, 

here is part two of the HITS Playlist!

If you don't exactly know what that is, let me explain:

As I have worked with a nice amount of artists and bands I decided to turn the list I keep with all of them written down into a playlist.

Because the list is actually quite long (insert proud face here) I decided to split it into multiple parts.

You can find part one here.

Now here's part two:

(click on song title to listen, read more about each artist/band in the Genre Filter)

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Single: "Guide You Home" - Fluorescent Hearts (pre-stream)

Hey guys,

today I've got a little song review for you.

The song is called "Guide You Home" and it's by the Scottish pop band Fluorescent Hearts.

Fluorescent Hearts, one of the UK's top bands have released their debut album "Anthem" September 2012, opened for FINCH, performed in Ireland, Singapore and China and now they're ready to conquer the rest of the world.

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